I Live to Serve
by NOEPNOPENOEP
Summary: A pearl is created with one purpose, to serve their gem. Their master. Some relationships are mutual and caring, others aren't so fortunate. But when a servant has no one to serve, what then? Stuck in her gemstone since the rebellion, this pearl has missed the past few millennia and tries to find her place. A slice of life story with no set end, set in an AU sometime before ep 124.


It was a beautiful day. The birds sang sweetly, the sun shone brightly, the wind blew gently, and the flowers looked lovely. This once picturesque meadow had been scarred by the rebellion, some thought permanently. But flowers had come once again and a couple millennia had done wonders for the wildlife and greenery. It was in this place that a certain gem and her owner had once been walking once upon a time many years ago. They were the keepers of this peaceful grove and were more than happy to delight whatever visitors had shown up on their land, especially the diamonds.

Earth was such a delightful colony to be on. Other colonies had their charm and or lack of it, but Earth was so peaceful and beautiful. Preliminary scans of this area had deemed it of little tactical use, and so Pink Diamond in her wisdom had it set as a small congregation area for other noble gems and the like to spend their time when not on assignment. Granted these timeframes were rare and limited, but it wasn't much work to get a warp pad installed and assign a gem or two for maintenance.

Many gems had come and gone over millennia, but one had stayed here for all that time, lost amongst the flowers and fauna, not trapped but waiting for the right moment. She remembered very little from the rebellion. All she remembered was a final few words, a command to follow before she was poofed and left alone in the ground.

"Wait and hide."

Something serious had happened to her and the one who was hers. She just remembered those words, that final order, then followed them.

How long was she to wait? What was she meant to do? When was it truly safe for her to once again walk in her pure form? But a Pearl follows her commands to the letter, and so this one waited.

She waited and waited with silence her only company. For millennia, she sat in the field and did nothing, following her superior's command. But it had been so long, had she let too much time pass? What if she hadn't waited long enough? What would happen? What would she find?

These were the questions that passed the time as she calculated outcome after outcome after outcome. She had long agonised over her new appearance, she did have centuries to think about it after all. Perhaps it was finally time…

Time to form.

In that sunlit field, a fierce glow erupted from one of the flowerbeds as a small spherical gem rose into the air slowly. It's glow slowly shifted into a humanoid form, arms and legs protruded from a body made of light that formed around the old gem. Suddenly in a flash, the white light became coloured, and the gem's appearance became clear.

Her light pink skin became covered by a salmon pink maillot. Her hair was a cotton candy colour and was full and thick, bushy and messy, yet it seemed to hold together into a style with its own appeal. She also sported a white pair of flats to walk on complemented by a pair of pink leggings. To complete her outfit a short, transparent, waist length cloak manifested on her shoulders. Like most pearls, she was tall yet lithe and was created with beauty in mind. Finally, her gemstone found its usual place in her chest, eliptical and tinted with a slight pink shade.

Her new and unusual form descended to the ground, and soon she once again felt grass underneath her feet. She stood there for a moment and moved her arms, then her legs, her neck her fingers… It had been so long since she had a form. She felt like a new gem.

She observed the field around her. It hadn't much changed since last she remembered. There were still flowers, there was still grass, there was still a gentle breeze that moved her hair and clothing. Granted the positions and look had changed but the field still looked just as picturesque as it had millennia ago.

How long had she been gone? Was it still safe? Where was her gem? She looked around and yet was alone. She didn't seem like she was in any danger from anything, rebel or otherwise and so relaxed. But she did keep asking herself that question as she walked around the meadow. Where was her gem?

A pearl is made very differently from other gems. They aren't given facet numbers or cut IDs. Pearls are made for someone, for a gem that deserved them, and as such a pearl could be identified by who they were made for. But this pearl couldn't find her gem, and as such was lost.

She was always told what to do, when to do it, how to do it if she didn't know. But she was on her own now. "Hello?" She called out to the empty plains. "Is anyone there?"

The wind whistled a silent response. She walked around for a while, calling out for someone, anyone to come and find her, but no one showed in response. This whole meadow was once full of gems enjoying themselves, taking in the sights and talking amongst themselves. But now, this pearl felt lonely. She felt afraid. Perhaps she had waited too long.

A pearl is never alone. A pearl is made for someone, to serve someone, to live and die for someone. To be like she was, so desperately and truly alone was terrifying.

She wandered and wandered, trying to remember the landscape but coming up short. Everything had changed, she couldn't place anything. Eventually, however, she came across her salvation, the garden's warp pad. Her once sad face lit up, and she ran towards it praying it was still functional. She thought about where to go and immediately thought of the Galaxy warp.

With a thought, the pad activated, and after a short while in the bright slipstream of the warp, she found herself in the Galaxy warp, an array of warp pads that, unlike the earth pads which were only designed for short hops between the planetary hubs, were designed for intergalactic travel. However as the light of the warp dissipated she gasped.

The pads had been reduced to rubble, in particular, the Homeworld warp. She walked around, and sure enough, every single pad except the local ones were in pieces. Her once happy face fell with despair. She had no way to return home. She had no one by her side. She was alone, trapped on the tiny colony with no other support.

She walked over to a large chunk of rubble and sat upon it. What had she missed? The war had been on a downhill spiral ever since Pink Diamond had been shattered. A thousand years of warfare and destruction over one colony and for what?

Her eyes widened in realisation. What if the rebels had won? Surely after all this time Homeworld could have regrouped and routed them, right? But she looked around again at the destroyed pads and shook her head, some of her hair falling down on her face.

No, the rebels had apparently won. She knew that by only looking at the destruction around her. The homeworld warp would be in working order, this place would be a hub of commotion as gems from all over came and went. No, the rebels had won and had cut off Earth from the rest of the empire. It was only logical. Her eyes flew to the pad she had come here on, half expecting it to glow and for a bunch of quartz soldiers come for her and destroy her like they had so many others.

The grove she had been tasked with maintaining had been ignored by the war mainly. They had no part in it and only fulfilled their duty in maintaining the fauna. Her head began to fill with questions. Were the Crystal Gems still here? Would they still be looking for her? How long had she been sitting in that field alone and unnoticed?

She sat on her rock and pondered for a few minutes, or a few hours. She just had so much to consider that time seemed to just disappear before her. It was only when she saw a flash of light in the corner of her eye that she appeared to snap out of her haze. She looked to the activated warp pad and let out a worried squeak as she got up and tumbled across the Homeworld warp rubble and ducked down behind it, hoping that she had been quick enough.

"Steeeeveeeen!" called out a foreign voice, as the warp pad deactivated again. "Are you in here?" The voice sounded playful and happy but was definitely not one she recognised. "I bet you're ovvveeeer…Here! Aw…" The tone naturally implied a search of some kind. The owner of this voice was searching for something or someone in this case. But the phrase 'Steven' meant nothing to her. Nonetheless, she should probably try to avoid being found accidentally.

She considered her options, she could try and slip by to the warp pad, but the activation would put this gem and by extension any others on alert. She could try and fight, but, after so much time could she really fend off a rebel soldier? She was a pearl, the times where she had to use her weapon were few and rare and often ceremonius. Sure some pearls were built for fighting, often they belonged to great warriors and veteran soldiers who could use their pearl as a sparring partner. But she was not like those pearls, she was a mere servant. A garden keeper. What chance would she have?

"Come on Steven! I know you're in here! Probably."

Of course, she could just hide until they went away. But with how this gem was acting it was evident she didn't have much of a chance. She heard the echoes of footfalls and quickly figured out how close they were. After weighing all her options, she felt that she was going to be discovered anyway, whether it be moments or days she would be found eventually. She had no way to contact her home and had nothing else to do. Perhaps if she gave herself up, they'd treat her gently.

Hanging her head, she slowly got to her feet and spied the gem that had been searching.

"Found you! Wait, wha?"

It was a quartz soldier, granted a small one. Most likely an amethyst from one of the kindergartens. Many of them had joined up with the Crystal Gems, and this one was probably no different. However, she obviously had some form of defect, even with that Pearl knew better than cross her. She bowed her head and sighed. "Y-Yup…You found me!" she said with a joking tone.

There was a flash, and suddenly the soldier had a whip in her hands. "Who are you?!"

Immediately taken aback, the Pearl stepped back and put her hands up in some attempt to block a future attack. "I-I don't mean you any harm!"

The amethyst stepped forward, her eyes clearly showing her intent. "Where'd you come from?! Who sent you?!"

"I-I've been here, since the rebellion…I-I…I was told to hide! I-I, I don't know what's going on!"

The quartz lowered her weapon and confusion crossed her features. However, it was very clear that aggression was still the dominant trait here. "Hm. You're coming with me for now. See what the others think."

"O-Others?" the pearl asked, afraid.

"Yeah…But just to be safe!" The amethyst's whip flew through the air and wrapped itself around Pearl's form, tightening with a quick pull by the soldier. "Now, over to the pad and NO funny business. Alright?"

A few gentle nods and the two walked to the warp pad. It lit up, and soon the pair found themselves in a very different room that the pearl had never seen before. It all sppeared crystalline at first around the pad but the room quickly changed into a wooden appearance further away. There were wooden beams, a counter, a large chair and many other objects that were occupied by a couple other gems. "Hey guys! Look what I found!"

The two looked over and gasped before moving over, weapons drawn. At second glance they appeared to be another pearl and a fusion, one that this pearl had never seen before.

"A gem?" said the foreign pearl, as she lowered her spear.

"Yeah, found her skulking around the galaxy warp while I was looking for Steven."

"Amethyst, let her go," said the fusion.

Soon the whip surrounding Pearl's form was gone, and she took a step back from her captors. "I-I don't want to hurt any of you...I'm just a little confused is all…" she said rather sheepishly as she adjusted her hair.

"Who are you with? Why'd you come here?" questioned the fusion.

They had all calmed down a bit, but their weapons still sat at the ready. She'd have to pick her words carefully. "I…I've been on Earth since the rebellion. I'm not with anyone. Not anymore," she said looking down, a tone of sadness sneaking into her voice. "I've been out for so long I…I don't even know how long it's been."

The trio of gems looked amongst each other, seemingly confused. "Show us your gem."

Pearl did as she was asked and brought her hands away from her chest, standing meekly as her gemstone shone brightly for the observers

.

"It doesn't…Look corrupted," said the other pearl, a curious tone in her voice.

Pearl tilted her head. "Corruption?"

"You really don't know…Do you?" asked the fusion quietly.

Pearl shook her head, bring her arms in close against her chest out of unease. There was a moment of silence before the warp pad activated again and a new form appeared. "Hahaha! I win Amethyst! I was hiding in the-"

The room fell silent as the five looked at eachother, all unsure of what to do. "Who's that?" asked the newcomer.

"I think it's best if she explains," said the fusion gem quietly.

So Pearl went into a long explanation of her current circumstances. Why she was on Earth, what she had been doing, why she was the warp, who she was with and so on. Everything from her placement to the current moment. There were very few questions, but they were answered and the story continued. When she finished, the group considered her story in silence. Pearl simply bowed her head and shut her eyes.

"You really stayed in your gem for all this time?" asked the other pearl with what sounded like…Concern?

"I was told to. I didn't really know what else to do or what I'd do when I came back…"

"I've heard about long regenerations but, surely you must have been wanting to form for so long?" asked the other pearl again. "It's just unheard of! I didn't know you COULD stay like that for as long as you did."

"I wanted to form, I wanted to so badly, but I was told to wait. My gem kept screaming at me to take form, but I had my orders and I was…Afraid. How long has it been?"

"Homeworld left over four and half thousand years ago," said the fusion which had come to be known as Garnet.

It had been that long? Had Homeworld just given up? Surely they shouldve been able to get reinforcements and come back to finish the fight and the colony. But here they were, Pearl and these…Rebels. Pearl noticed that the strange gem, 'Steven', had taken to simply staring at her form, at which point Pearl started to stare back. Steven did not look like a gem in the traditional sense, Steven was strange and new to her; clearly the feeling was mutual. "So you're a pearl too?"

Curiosity was the first tone Pearl identified in that voice, so she was more than happy to oblige. Nodding she responded. "Yes, I am."

"And you're just called…Pearl?"

Another smiling nod. "That's me."

The Steven seemed to contemplate this simple information for a moment before frowning. "But then how will you guys know who I'm talking to?" The two pearls in the room looked at eachother, then back to Steven.

"Well, we could probably tell from the-" the other pearl began but she was quickly interrupted.

"I'm going to call you, Pearl-" said Steven pointing to the rebel, "-and you, new Pearl!" he said happily. "That way we can't get confused!"

'New Pearl' tilted her head just a little. It sounded a little basic, numbers would sound more professional. But she knew better than to fight it. "If that's what you want to call me, you may call me that." She paused for a minute, considering her options. She was stuck on Earth, Homeworld had abandoned her, she was surrounded by rebels with no chance of getting home. So what was she to do?

Fighting them was pointless. Escaping was impossible. She was alone. So she'd just have to submit and hope for the best. "What are you all going to do with me?"

The 'Crystal Gems' looked amongst eachother, seemingly at a loss for words. It was however Steven who once again broke the silence. "She can stay here! With us! Right?"

Everyone looked to Steven in confusion as the other Pearl began to talk. "Now, Steven, that might not be the best idea. For all we know she could be lying about the-"

"She's not," interrupted Garnet, to the surprise of the others. "She's not going anywhere, for now new Pearl can stay with us here, as long as that's fine with her."

The other gems looked like they were about to say something but a look from Garnet made them think twice. They all looked to new Pearl, awaiting an answer. "I've lost the only job I was meant to have, and with her gone, I have no idea what else to do. I don't know what my life could possibly be like now. I poured all of my being into my service, but it's all been ripped away."

There was silence for a brief moment. It was true, she had lost her gem. A pearl is made for one gem and is to serve them until the end. But now, it seemed like there was really only one option.

She stood up and bowed her head, giving a short curtsy and smiling at the gems. "I am yours. I will be at your disposal whenever you all should need it."


End file.
